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06.23.11

Dutch Politician Not Guilty of Defaming Islam

Evert Elzinga / AP Photo

An outspoken right-wing Dutch politician didn’t defame Muslims, a court in the Netherlands has ruled. It’s a big victory for Geert Wilders, who has called the Qur’an “fascist” and compared it to Hitler’s Mein Kampf among other inflammatory remarks about Islam. But a judge said that while his 2008 movie Fitna was “hurtful” and “shocking,” it did qualify as free speech. The movie demanded alterations to the Islamic holy book and incited protests in Indonesia and Pakistan, among other countries. Wilders hailed the verdict, which resolves three years of trial, as a victory for free speech.